One afternoon as we headed out to the garden, Annabelle and I met this little turtle. I noticed him as soon as we opened the back door and considered it a strange but welcome omen. It was the second of three turtles I crossed paths with this week, so out of curiosity, I researched the symbolic meaning of turtles and learned the following:
1. In the east, the turtle’s shell is a symbol of the heavens, and its underside, a square, is symbolic of the earth. Thus, the turtle represents a union between heaven and earth.
2. The turtle, in Hiduism, symbolizes the creator and holder of the world.
3. In Japan, the turtled symbolizes longevity and good fortune, and in China, the turtle signifies fertility, vitality, and great patience.
4. In Africa, the turtle represents the feminine and thus appears in fertility rites.
5. The Iroquois considered the turtle the wisest of all beings and as a symbol of Mother Earth. The hard outer shell protects living beings, analogous to Mother Earth protecting life.
As a child I loved listening to my mother read the story of the tortoise and the hare to my sister and me, and so I came to see turtles as slow but strong beings with great endurance and patience. When I became a runner, I often thought of myself as the tortoise because speed in my stride is lacking; however, I always manage to complete my runs with patience knowing that I give my best effort and am able to endure.
I selected the word health this week to inspire my gratitude post, so I thought it was particularly auspicious that turtles– being the symbol of longevity, fertility, endurance, and patience–should cross my path. In our family, health is our wealth; both my husband and I are conscientious of taking care of ourselves. We both try to choose nutritious foods (although my husband loves fried foods and ice cream, and I am a slave to chocolate), we exercise, spend time together (and a fair amount of much needed alone time, which nurtures the soul), garden, learn, and laugh. We are hoping to set a good example for our children. Already Annabelle has revealed an appetite for fruits and veggies and a real love for dance, running, and swimming. I pray that our little girl will grow up to be a healthy adult, though having said that, I recognize that there are so many components to the idea of health.
I asked myself, what exactly contributes to one’s health? I created an idea tree with health being the trunk, and the roots and branches representing different values that influence our health. What I realized from this visual (and likely understood intuitively all along) is that our individual health is connected to and interdependent upon the health of all else: the physical, mental, and spiritual health of our families, our water supply, our air, our soil, the collective health of the people in our community, in our nation, and across the world.
And then I thought about what power we have over our individual health when our personal wellness is linked to a great number of influences. This thought path brought me back my original purposes for creating this blog: that our individual choices to protect and care for our environment are tied into our care and love for ourselves, our families, our communities, and all of nature.
Small as we may perceive ourselves to be, our choices speak volumes and can truly make a difference in the grand scheme of things. What I have learned since the inception of Green Mamma is that the best way we, as individuals, can exercise our power to protect and preserve our personal health, our families’ health, worldwide health, and the health of Mother Earth, is to reduce carbon emissions and slow down global warming.
How can we slow global warming?
I visited ClimateCrisis.org to refresh my memory and focus on specific ways that my family can take action against global warming. The good news is that our family is already making a good effort for going green; so far, we are: using CFLS which require 60% less energy than incandescent bulbs, replacing filters on our heating and a.c. units, choosing energy efficient appliances, turning off and unplugging electronic devices when they are not in use, running full loads in our dishwasher, recycling, using recycled products, buying locally grown and organic fresh foods when possible, eating vegetarian (100% for me and at least 75% of the time for my husband and daughter), reducing road mileage (my husband is trying to bike into work 3 times each week and of late, I bike to local children’s events as much as possible), we maintain our cars and keep our tires inflated, and we are intending to purchase either a hybrid or a more fuel efficient car the next time we buy a car.
Still, there is much more to be done. Right now, our house is cool (almost too cool) and could stand for a 2 degree temperature drop, we could learn how to use our programmable thermostat ( that one is a little embarrassing to admit to), we can install low flow shower heads and use a clothes line (when our HOA isn’t looking), we can plant trees and switch to green power, we can exercise our consumer power and choose fewer packaged foods, we could carshare with our neighbors, and reduce the number of road trips our family makes each year.
The turtle as a symbol of Mother Earth, the world resting upon its back, is a reminder to me that all of life depends on the health of our planet. As thinking human beings endowed with compassion, we have the ability to care for our earth and thus for ourselves, wildlife, and nature. It comes down to our everyday choices. Whether we drive miles and miles from home to work, what beverages and food we consume, the containers and packaging used for the things we buy, personal care products and their ingredients, home and garden care, the amount of garbage we send to landfills each week, the list goes on and on.
What are your thoughts regarding the health of Mother Earth? As individuals, do you think it is within our personal power to protect and care for the environment? Have you or your family experienced a health issue that was somehow connected to the health of the local environment? I love reading your thoughts. Please share.
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